[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 103 (Thursday, May 29, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 32020-32021]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-13516]


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DEPARTMENT OF THE DEFENSE

Office of the Secretary


Notice of Availability for Public Viewing of the Draft 
Environmental Assessment for the Pulsed Fast Neutron Analysis Cargo 
Inspection System Test Facility at the Ysleta Port of Entry Commercial 
Cargo Facility, El Paso, TX

AGENCY: Counterdrug Technology Development Program Office (CTDPO), DoD.

ACTION: Notice of availability.

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SUMMARY: The notice announces that a draft Environmental Assessment 
(EA) regarding potential environmental impacts resulting from the 
Pulsed Fast Neutron Analysis (PFNA) Cargo Inspection System Test 
Facility is available for public review. The facility will be 
constructed at the Ysleta Port of Entry cargo lot in El Paso, Texas. 
The Counterdrug Technology Development Program Office (CTDPO) will 
consider comments before issuing a final EA.

DATES: The draft EA will be available for public review for a 30-day 
period beginning on May 29, 2003. Written comments must be received by 
June 30, 2003.

ADDRESSES: Written comments may be submitted to the Department of 
Defense, Counterdrug Technology Development Program Office, Naval 
Surface Warfare Center, 17320 Dahlgren Road, Dahlgren, Virginia 22448-
5100, Attn: Dr. Stephen Haimbach. Copies of the draft EA will be 
available for viewing at the above address. Copies may also be obtained 
by telephone request through the following phone number: 540/653-2374, 
and by accessing the following Internet address: http://www.scainc.biz/EA.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Stephen Haimbach at 540/653-2374 
or at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

Introduction

    In its counter-terrorism and counter-drug efforts, the Federal 
government has invested considerable resources into developing 
technologies for detecting explosives, narcotics or other contraband 
hidden among the freight imported into the United States. Radiation-
based, non-intrusive inspections systems, such as X-ray and gamma ray, 
have been in use for several years by Federal government agencies. A 
related technology, called Pulsed Fast Neutron Analysis (PFNA), was 
developed several years ago for cargo inspection. PFNA is designed to 
directly and automatically detect and measure the presence of specific 
materials, such as cocaine or explosives, which may have been hidden 
within the vehicle. PFNA technology uses pulses of neutrons as the 
radiation source to non-intrusively examine packages and containers for 
suspect materials. While PFNA has been successfully demonstrated in a 
laboratory setting, it

[[Page 32021]]

has yet to be tested in an operational environment.
    The Department of Defense (DoD) in cooperation with the United 
States Bureau of Customs and Border Protection and the Transportation 
Security Administration plans to conduct a six-month operational test 
of a PFNA system at the Ysleta/Zaragosa Border Station in Ysleta, 
Texas. Ysleta is next to the Rio Grande River just southeast of the 
city of El Paso. Ysleta was selected as the test location principally 
because it had space available (no additional land purchase was 
required) and sufficient commercial traffic.
    The test facility will consist of an inspection building 
(approximately 220 feet by 60 feet) housing the PFNA equipment and 
several smaller structures for electronic equipment and operators.

Inspection Process

    Vehicles will be selected for inspection from the routine stream of 
commerce and will be directed to the PFNA test facility. The driver 
will leave the vehicle and wait in a designated area. A self-powered 
towing machine will slowly pull the unoccupied vehicle through the 
facility and past the scanning device in the inspection building. Once 
all safety checks are verified, the vehicle is scanned with the 
neutrons. The pulsed beam moves up and down while the vehicle slowly 
passes by to ensure that all of the contents are inspected.
    Many of the neutrons pass through the vehicle unaffected and are 
stopped by the shield walls of the inspection building. Some of the 
neutrons hit individual atoms, subsequently giving off a gamma ray of a 
specific frequency that is characteristic of a chemical element. 
Sensors located along the walls of the corridor detect the quantities 
for each of the specific frequencies of gamma rays for the short period 
of time of each pulse of neutrons. The system's electronics and 
computers compile the gamma ray information to determine the properties 
of individual material locations within the vehicle. For the chemical 
makeup of specific explosives and narcotics, the computers 
automatically alert operators of the presence of these substances. The 
PFNA system generates three-dimensional images of the target materials 
on computer monitors to help pinpoint the location of suspect materials 
for U.S. Customs inspectors.

Radiation Properties

    While the neutron generator used in PFNA systems does not contain 
radioactive material, the neutron production process does produce a 
trace amount of radioactive material. Specifically, a small amount 
(less than 1/100th of the levels allowed by the EPA regulations) of the 
radioisotope tritium (radioactive hydrogen) is a byproduct of the 
process, which is vented to the atmosphere.
    The neutrons produce radioactive isotopes of some of the atoms 
within the vehicle. This may increase the level of radioactivity of 
scanned cargo materials. Computer modeling has shown that the level of 
induced radioactivity is of little consequence to human health. 
Residual radioactivity measurements will be made during the test to 
confirm the absence of significant levels of radioactivity.
    For safety, personnel are shielded from radiation by staying out of 
the equipment area during operations. The facility's walls are designed 
to prevent all but minute amounts of radiation from leaving the area. 
X-rays and gamma rays are produced both by the fast moving neutrons 
themselves as they collide with atoms, and the neutron producing 
equipment. X-rays and gamma rays are both forms of ionizing radiation, 
which by virtue of their high energy, can convert molecules into 
charged ions, and pose an increased risk of cancer with excessive 
exposure. Visible light, infrared light, microwaves, and radio waves 
are non-ionizing forms of electromagnetic radiation because of their 
relatively lower energies.
    It is believed that the PFNA inspection system is safe, with 
exposures to radioactive materials and ionizing radiation to the 
general public and US Customs personnel well below Federal and State 
standards. The facility design, including radiation shielding, will be 
designed to ensure that levels of exposure will be statistically 
indistinguishable from local area background.

Public Review of the Draft Environmental Assessment

    Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the 
Council on Environmental Quality regulations implementing NEPA (40 Code 
of Federal Regulations (CFR) Parts 1500-1508), the assessment has been 
conducted to determine whether the proposed action is a major federal 
action having significant effects on the environment, which would 
require preparation of an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), or 
whether the impacts of the proposed action (after mitigation) are less 
than significant, which would result in preparation of a Finding of No 
Significant Impact (FONSI).
    This notice announces a 30-day period for public review of the 
draft EA and a 30-day period for submitting comments to CTDPO, both 
periods commencing on the date this document is published in the 
Federal Register.

Evaluation of Environmental Impact

    Significant comments received from the public and agencies during 
the comment period will be addressed in, and included as an Appendix 
to, the final EA. Notice of issuance of the final EA will be published 
in the Federal Register.
    Should CTDPO determine, based on comments received and any 
additional relevant information developed, that the design, 
construction, and/or operation of PFNA system will not have a 
significant impact on the environment, CTDPO will prepare a FONSI, 
notice of which will be published in the Federal Register. Should CTDPO 
determine that significant environmental impacts exist due to the 
project, CTDPO will proceed with preparation of an EIS as required 
under the NEPA, the CEQ Regulations (40 CFR part 1502), and the 
Department of Defense's environmental policies and procedures.

Public Review and Comments

    The draft EA will be available for public review for a period of 30 
days beginning on the date this document is published in the Federal 
Register. The draft EA can be reviewed at the following address: Ysleta 
Branch of the El Paso Public Library, 9321 Alameda Ave., El Paso, Texas 
79907. Printed copies of the draft EA are $50.00 each and may be 
obtained by telephone request through the following phone number: 410/
593-9909, or freely downloaded by accessing the following Internet 
address: www.scainc.biz/EA.
    Comments regarding the draft EA may be submitted as set forth in 
the ADDRESSES section of this document.

    Dated: May 23, 2003.
Patricia L. Toppings,
Alternate OSD Federal Register Liaison Officer, Department of Defense.
[FR Doc. 03-13516 Filed 5-27-03; 10:44 am]
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